1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a portable terminal typified, for example, by a mobile device such as cellular phone, PDA, or smart phone, and more specifically relates to a slide-type portable terminal provided with a mechanism for sliding housings to each other.
2. Description of Related Art
Conventionally, various types of slide-type portable terminals provided with the mechanism for sliding housings to each other are proposed. Such slide-type portable terminals include, for example, a portable terminal configured so that a display screen (display part) for displaying image is switchable between a portrait state and a landscape state as shown in Patent Literature 1.
FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view showing a structure of such a conventional slide-type portable terminal FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the conventional slide-type portable terminal with a display part being linearly slid while maintaining the portrait state, wherein a first housing is partially cut so that the operation of a support mechanism is easier to understand. FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the conventional slide-type portable terminal with the display part being rotated into the landscape state, wherein the first housing is partially cut so that the operation of the support mechanism is easier to understand.
As shown in FIGS. 8 to 10, a conventional slide-type portable terminal 100 includes a first housing 101 having a vertically long portrait display part 101a on a surface thereof, a second housing 102 having an operation part 103 on a surface thereof, and a support mechanism 104 for slidably supporting the first housing 101 relative to the second housing 102.
The support mechanism 104 includes first and second guide shafts 111 and 112 provided on the second housing 102 side; a first guide hole 121 for guiding the first guide shaft 111, which is provided on the first housing 101 side; and a second guide hole 122 for guiding the second guide shaft 112, which is provided on the first housing 101 side. The first guide hole 121 is composed of a vertically extending linear hole. The second guide hole 122 includes a straight part 122a parallel to the first guide hole 121 and an arc-shaped arc part 122b continuous with the lower end of the straight part 122a. 
The first guide hole 121 and the second guide hole 122 are formed in a guide plate 120. The guide plate 120 is fixed to the first housing 101, whereby the first guide hole 121 and the second guide hole 122 are provided on the first housing 101 side.
In the thus-constituted conventional slide-type portable terminal 100, the first housing 101 is vertically slid relative to the second housing 102 by sliding the second guide shaft 112 along the straight part 122a of the second guide hole 122 while sliding the first guide shaft 111 along the first guide hole 121. In FIG. 9, this slide movement is completed, and the operation part 103 is partially exposed.
The first housing 101 is rotated relative to the second housing 102 by sliding the second guide shaft 112 along the arc part 122b of the second guide hole 122 from a state where the first housing 101 completes the above-mentioned slide movement (the state shown in FIG. 9). FIG. 10 shows a state in which the rotational slide movement of the second housing 102 is completed, and in this state, the display part 101a is switched from the portrait state to the landscape state. In this state, the operation part 103 formed on the surface of the second housing 102 is entirely exposed.
This structure is convenient since the linear movement and rotational movement of the first housing 101 relative to the second housing 102 can be performed by one slide support mechanism without using two separate mechanisms for linear movement and rotational movement.    Patent Literature 1: JP-A-2008-193519